Reconciliation
I really hope this works, cause if it doesn't... I don't know what else I can do.
I straightened Twilight's plate with a shaking hoof before moving Starlight's fork slightly to the left. The spread before me was truly impressive, if I do say so myself. The silverware was perfectly organized and the dishes were looking scrumptious.
Three plates of pancakes, each specially made by me for Starlight, Twilight, and myself were arranged on the table. For me, a quadruple stack topped with a dollop of whipped cream, cherry syrup, and rainbow sprinkles.
For Starlight, another quad stack with a very light drizzling of maple syrup, diced strawberries, and whole blueberries. And finally...
For... Twilight.
Four pancakes with a liberal amount of chocolate fudge in place of syrup and a hoofful of dark chocolate chips. The three plates were my best attempt at somewhat emulating the desserts Twilight had bought for me and Starlight on our day out. I would've made them original flavors, but I realized pretty quickly that I had very little idea what they liked as far as food goes. And so, I went with what I did know about their tastes.
I'd learned how to prepare this particular breakfast from my mentor a few months back. Flapjacks were one of her favorite dishes to make, so one day I asked her if she could show me how to make them. It was an attempt to get a bit closer to her and it worked out fantastically. It had been a really fun day. I wasn't exactly a gourmet chef, but Celestia never lost her patience with me while I was doing my best to learn.
But... I guess she never loses her patience with me.
Not that I could recall, at least.
Either way, it didn't take too much practice to perfect the art of pancake making, so over time I'd become pretty good at cooking them.
I just hope it's enough... or at least a good start.
I still felt terrible about what had happened. I ran out on my crush and a mare who was doing her best to help me do better, be better. Not only that, but Celestia told me Starlight tried to find me and if I was a betting mare, -- I wasn't -- I'd wager Twilight had done the same.
To make matters even worse, -- and to make me feel even more guilty -- Starlight decided to come to my room. I didn't know at the time, my music way too loud for me to hear much of anything else, -- enchanted to cancel any incoming noise and to muffle itself so as to not be heard by anypony outside my room -- but one of our guards had notified me she had stopped by when I finally left my room to seek out Luna.
Star was trying so hard, all for my sake, and judging by Twilight's behavior back in the lab, she was too. I had to do better, for their sakes. I had to show them I cared about them too and this meager breakfast was the first step in doing that.
I'd spent the entire night with Luna in her alternate reality. It had been one of the best nights of my life. We talked the whole time. About Twilight. About Celestia. About lots of things and nothing at all. I tried to ask her about my newly discovered power, but she insisted I speak with her sister about it.
It didn't seem to matter anymore anyway, my power. Once we'd left her reality marble I felt my mana reserves go back to normal. Whatever she'd done had apparently only affected me while I was with her in the other world.
It doesn't matter. If that's my full potential then... I'm gonna reach it.
After leaving the Night Princess in the morning, I'd headed to my room to get some rest. On the way, I quickly realized I wasn't tired at all. I chalked up my vigor to spending all night in Princess Luna's heavenly ocean.
Since I had been brimming with vitality and it was a brand new day, I'd decided to find the girls and make amends. Unfortunately, I knew it wasn't as simple as swinging by their rooms and saying I was sorry. I'd left them high and dry. I'd avoided them like the plague.
I didn't even acknowledge Starlight when she came to see me.
They'd done nothing wrong... and I'd treated them like dirt. I had to do something, even if it was just a pathetic attempt at a kind gesture. So I settled on breakfast. I left notes in front of their doors and went straight to the kitchens to prepare.
And now I was sitting at the table in the dining hall, waiting, praying that they'd accept my invitations. Our mentors wouldn't be coming. I'd asked Luna to notify Celestia of my intentions and the Princess of the Night promised to keep her sister busy for the morning.
It was already half past nine, -- thirty minutes after the time I'd requested the duo to join me -- and I was beginning to lose hope.
I can't blame them.
I pushed my plate aside, laying my forelegs down and resting my head on them.
You messed up bad, Sunset, I sniffled.
"I wouldn't be surprised if they never want to see me again," I sighed dejectedly. "It's all my fault, after-"
"Being a little melodramatic, don't you think?"
I lifted my head to find my grinning crush standing next to me. "T-Twilight!?"
"She does have a penchant for that kind of thing," Starlight drew my gaze from my other side.
"Starlight!?" I can't say their appearance didn't immediately lift my spirits.
"I'm guessing this one's mine?" Twilight took a seat in front of her plate. She didn't look displeased, so that was good.
"It better be," Starlight sat on the chair next to Twilight. "I'm not eating that." she frowned at the purple mare's plate. "This one does look pretty tasty, though."
"Is this right, Sunset?" Twilight asked. "Are we sitting in the right places?"
I nodded, wiping the moisture from my eyes with a foreleg. "Girls... I'm really sor-"
"There's no need for that, Sunny," Starlight was already hovering her fork with her magic, carefully constructing a stack with a piece of pancake, some strawberry, and a whole blueberry. "Isn't that right, Sparkles?"
"Agreed," Twilight was already digging in as well, a smile on her face. "Although... I would like to know what it was all about."
Starlight glanced at me with a slightly cocked eyebrow. I moved my head left to right, the movement barely perceptible, even if Twilight wasn't cheeks deep in her pancakes.
"Doesn't matter anymore, Sparkles," Starlight's lips curled upwards just a fraction. "Let's just enjoy this delicious apology."
I mouthed "thank you" at the lilac mare before starting on my own plate. It wasn't really a problem for me, letting Twilight know why I'd run away.
Not anymore, at least.
But Luna and I had come to something of an agreement on the subject.
Since it didn't seem fair to Twilight for the both of us to just throw our feelings at her, -- and one of us expressing our intentions before the other was completely out of the question -- neither of us would confess to the mare unless Twilight showed interest first.
I think Luna chose to do it this way for my sake, and I loved her for it. If, at some point, Twilight fell in love with Luna, -- or already had romantic feelings for the alicorn -- I'm fairly certain nothing would change if I confessed to her. On the other hoof, if Twilight grew to feel something for me, I wasn't certain that feeling would remain if Luna told Twilight how she felt.
Regardless, I didn't want to betray the Night Princess' trust. She'd shown me a side of herself I'd never seen before, and honestly... I really liked her. When she was just being Luna and not a princess of Equestria, she was like the older sister I'd always wanted.
I'd do whatever it took to keep the new bond I'd formed with her strong. Thankfully, Starlight backed me up, so I didn't need to worry about it.
"Soooo," I spoke up after downing some ice-cold milk, drawing their gazes. "What did you girls do yesterday?"
Starlight swallowed some pancake. "Is that really what we're gonna do? Small talk?" she frowned.
"Oh! If you don't want to that's..." I trailed off, sheepishly taking a drink of my milk again.
"I dunno. It doesn't sound too bad to me," Twilight chuckled, a sly grin coming to her face. "I am a little curious about what happened after you told my mistress you almost killed my soon to be sister-in-law."
Needless to say, the milk I had in my mouth shot out like a projectile. Thankfully, I'd had the good sense to turn my head away from the girls. "WHAT!?"
"That's dirty, Twilight. Reeeeal dirty," the lilac mare glowered at the violet unicorn. "You're gonna treat me like that even after I told you I had a headache?"
"What happened!?" I was beside myself. How Starlight had managed to stay out of trouble after... something like that, along with Twilight getting a sister-in-law, was a lot to take in.
"Not much," Starlight shrugged, though she continued to stare daggers at Twilight. "I talked to the Princesses about it. Speaking of which, have either of you seen any newspapers today?"
Twilight and I both shook our head in the negative.
"Well, it should be fine," Starlight took a drink of her milk before continuing. "I mean, it's not like Cadenza was pissed off at me or an-"
"C-CADENZA!?" I blurted out, looking desperately from one of them to the other and then back again. They stared back at me like I was crazy. I composed myself as best I could before resuming. "Cadenza, as in, part of the Royal family of the Crystal Empire, Cadenza? Cadenza, as in, PRINCESS CADENZA, CADENZA!?"
"Bingo!" Twilight snickered, pointing her fork at me.
"STARLIGHT!?" I gasped. If either of them knew just how important our relations were with the Crystal Empire neither of them would be taking such a thing this lightly. Celestia had spent countless sleepless nights worrying over the north, I'd personally witnesed it.
It wasn't so much that she couldn't resolve the issues that cropped up there. No, that wasn't the problem at all. Neither Celestia nor Luna focused on the north. Both did daily checks, but Equestria is... extensive. Doing such a thing takes time. Disaster could strike at any moment and that can mean hundreds, if not thousands, of lives, could be be lost at the drop of a bit.
"Like I said, Sunny, our mentors already took care of it," Starlight scratched at her mane with a hoof, irritation painting her features.
"BUT-"
"You trust Princess Celestia... don't you?" she cut me off, stabbing another bite with her fork before lifting it to her mouth.
Of course I do, she knows that.
I opened my mouth to protest, but couldn't. With a frustrated huff I gave up.
"Fine." I took another bite of food. Halfway through chewing I recalled the other half of Twilight's statement which caused me to start choking.
"SUNSET!? / SUNNY!?" both of them called out. I lifted a hoof, coughing in an attempt to clear my throat and compose myself.
"I'm... okay," I managed to get out after the episode was over.
"Maybe, chew your food," Twilight poked at me playfully.
"I'll try," I blushed. "A-anyway, who's related to you that's marrying Princess Cadenza?" I lifted another bite to my mouth. My question made Twilight tense up, her eyes bugging out.
"Oh, that'd be Twilight's big brother," Starlight was positively glowing, the horseshoe now on the other hoof.
I nearly choked again. "YOU HAVE A BROTHER!?" Today was just full of surprises.
"I'm amazed Princess Celestia hasn't told you about him," Twilight had recovered from her stupor. She wasn't mad, -- or at least, I didn't think she was -- she looked disappointed.
"She doesn't..." I sighed. It had always been more than obvious that Twilight had a chip on her shoulder because of my mentor. I wasn't sure if now was the time to try and mend that chip, but I couldn't just sit quietly. "Celestia has always had a hard time bringing you up, Twilight."
"What do you mean?" she asked, her demeanor not changing at all.
"Well..." It was obviously a touchy subject. I didn't want to overstep my bounds, but I didn't want her to think my mentor was a heartless monster either. "When I talk about you, sh-"
"You talk about Twilight behind her back?" Starlight looked at me with faux disgust, but I could tell it was an uninformed attempt at having fun. I glared at the mare, instantly shutting her down. She promptly went back to eating, a disappointed pout on her face.
"It's fine, Sunset. Go ahead," Twilight didn't even react to Starlight's joke, her eyes still locked on me.
"When you come up in conversation," I chose my words much more carefully. "I'm typically the one that brings you up. I don't think it's that she dislikes you or anything," I quickly clarified. "It's just... there's a lot of pain there for her too, y'know?"
"I do," she had stopped eating, her eyes downcast.
...
...
...
For the longest time, the only sound in the hall was Starlight's chewing. It was... annoying, but I'd take it any day over dead silence. I fiddled with my fork, poking at my remaining breakfast.
I'd always wanted to know what happened between the two of them, but no matter how hard I tried to drag the past out of her, all Celestia would tell me was that Twilight had wanted to be her student. Twilight herself never talked about her past, at least not with me anyway.
It was a troubling situation. One that I wanted to help both of them with, and one that I'd never gotten the full story on.
Maybe if I-
"My brother's name is Shining. Shining Armor," she hadn't lifted her head, her eyes betraying a strong sense of sorrow. "He left a long time ago. We don't... we don't really talk anymore."
I looked at Starlight who, thankfully, was done with her plate and returned my concerned look.
"That bad?" she asked Twilight, her tone much kinder than it had been before.
"Bad enough," she brushed a hoof through her mane. "The worst part is, I don't even know if it's my fault."
I wanted to press, to ask her what she'd meant, but it felt like the wrong time. Instead, I kept quiet.
...
"And now we have to go to his empire and play nice." Needless to say, Starlight's statement baffled me.
"You and Twilight are going to the Crystal Empire?" I asked with a tilt of my head.
She laughed uncomfortably. "Actually..."
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Thanks a lot, Celestia.
I tossed some more necessities into my saddlebags. The girls and I had amicably parted ways after finishing our meals. We all needed to prepare for our upcoming "trip", which we'd discussed at length.
Apparently me, Twilight, and Starlight had already gotten our next objective. Queen Cantata, ruler of the Crystal Empire, had requested the three of us attend the wedding of her only daughter, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.
I assumed they wanted Twilight to attend because she was related to the groom. As far as Starlight, she'd explained that the queen had been impressed by her magical aptitude and that's why she'd been invited. Neither of them could tell me why I was going.
Not that I don't want to go.
It was just... strange. Starlight and Twilight both had legitimate reasons to go. I, on the other hoof, seemed to be going just as a formality.
I can see the headlines now...
Princess Celestia's pupils to attend the wedding of the Princess of the Crystal Empire!
I didn't like it... but Celestia only ever had my best interests in mind. Since I'd first met her, she'd proven that time and time again. I'd do anything for her...
I just wish she'd keep me in the loop.
At noon tomorrow the three of us were to be on a train headed for the Crystal Empire. The wedding of Princess Cadenza and Twilight's brother, Shining Armor, was to be held on Friday, so the three of us would be spending a few days in the Empire. The presence of the Immortal Sisters' students was meant to bolster the Crystal Empire's security during a time of celebration.
Normally, Celestia or Luna would be present for the ceremony, but Luna was already scheduled to attend an event in the Thestral Dominion. Celestia would never leave Canterlot without a ruler, not even for a single day. Despite my irritation, I couldn't be more thrilled.
My beloved mentor was pushed into a corner. Unlike our first task to Starlight's town, there'd be no opportunity for them to do any foalsitting. We would be on our own.
I can't wait!
As I moved to lay another item in my bags the base of my horn twinged, causing my telekinesis to fail. I rubbed my head, a sharp pain bouncing around in my skull.
"Weird..." I rubbed my forehead gently. I let my nerves calm before activating my mana again and picking up the book I'd been moving. In a flash of blinding light, the tome was gone.
"Oookaaay..."
It could've been teleported, but it hadn't felt like I'd performed that spell. "What the hay is-"
*Knock*
*Knock*
...
*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*
I trotted to the door, opening it quickly.
"Good afternoon, Princess!" I greeted my mentor with a hug. "What brings you to my room? I figured you'd be getting ready for court."
The Princess of the Sun returned my embrace before following behind me into my quarters. "Luna notified me of your intentions to... apologize to Twilight and Starlight. I wanted to see how it went... amongst other things."
I knew my mentor well enough to know that "amongst other things" was the real reason she was here. That didn't mean she was lying to me though. "It went great, Princess!" I went back to packing. "Your pancakes went over really well!"
"That's wonderful to hear, Sunset! I'm so happy for you!" she looked in my bag. "Am I correct in assuming Twilight explained your next task to you?"
"Yyyyes... she did," I replied, trying my best to hide my feelings. It was pointless when speaking to her, but I couldn't change my nature.
"You aren't happy about the way you found out," she watched me as I looked through my desk.
"No. I'm not." I didn't even need to look at her to know my blunt response bothered her.
"I'm sorry, Sunset," she walked over to me, standing next to my desk. "Initially, only Twilight was requested. I barely received Queen Cantata's letter while speaking with Starlight on the matter of her... mistake." I knew she wasn't lying. I wasn't sure she ever did, but it didn't change the fact that she hadn't been the one to tell me.
But... she is here now.
"After court, I was swamped with work and then Twilight showed up at my door and..." she sighed, closing her eyes. "And... and you were with my sister."
I froze, speaking without turning my head.
"Princess... you're not-"
"NO!" she blared before realizing her unintentional outburst. "No, not at all. Perish the thought, Sunset," she furled her wings. "I was the one who told you to speak with Luna. How could I..."
...
Celestia...
I knew that tone all too well. I stood up to face my mentor, a sympathetic smile on my lips. "It's okay. To be jealous, I mean. We all are from time to ti-" my eyes shot open as an all too knowing grin grew on my mentor's face.
Dang. Guess I learned that one pretty quick.
"I assure you, Sunset," her smile grew wider, it quickly becoming blatantly obvious she was holding in laughter. "The closer you get to my little Lulu, the better," she booped my nose with a hoof. "We are family, after all."
Her simple gesture warmed my heart. She had a habit of doing that.
My beloved sun.
"You did it on purpose... didn't you?" I had to ask even though I already knew the answer.
"You had fun... didn't you? Discussing it with your friends, I mean." She moved back to stand over my bag. "Do you require anything else for your trip? I can get anything for you before you leave tomorrow."
I leapt on her back, wrapping my forelegs around her neck and nuzzling my cheek into hers. "You're so weird, Princess. I don't know why you don't just tell me what I need to know."
She giggled. "Teach a griffon to fish," she patted my hoof with hers.
"Uhm... huh?" I moved my head away, confused.
"It's an old griffon saying," she giggled at my bewilderment. "I tell you what you need to know when you need to know it, my most faithful student."
"I know," I snuggled into her once again. "By the way... I had a question about something strange that happened when I was with Princess Luna..."
I didn't like the expression that came to her face...
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Another banger keep it up
11777178
Thanks so much!
Sunny-buns, you're a bit of a wreck.
Also, I have a feeling that Celly's not going to be happy about Lulu mucking with Sunset's mana.
11777298
I think you're correct. On both points.
A new chapter, and it's a good one.
Sweet!
11777344
Thank you!
How have I missed this story for so long. This is truly awesome. Oh, and now you have 201 likes.
11779262
So we do! Thank you for the comment and reading! I better get to making that blog post.
I was going to make a joke about herds, but I thought about it so much that I forgot
Funny, while I was reading this sentence, I received a notification from the EaW reddit of a post about Lunarism, Nightmare and thestrals
11820395
HA!
11820401
That's a little creepy ngl, lol. What are the odds?
Damn, Sunny’s no fun. C’mon gurl, yah gotta go for that “Of course I do. Who doesn’t? Wait, you don’t do this with your mentor? Wait, you don’t have a mentor?” Wait, you’ve got TWO MENTORS!?! Where’s my second mentor!”
11837557
Lmao I will agree when it comes to Twilight, Sunset is definitely no fun.
Poke the bear. Poke it in the eye with a stick.
Pancakes can fix any friendship problems! And now our trio is off to the Crystal Empire for the wedding. Hope the Changelings won't mess this up this time, though I feel like something else might.
An excellent first arc. I'll take a little break here and start the Crystal Empire arc tomorrow. Until then...
11853874
Changelings... Changelings never change...lings.